


Quiet

by Sazula



Series: Mrs Hastings [11]
Category: Assassin's Creed
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Parenthood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-13
Updated: 2016-01-13
Packaged: 2018-05-13 18:38:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5712892
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sazula/pseuds/Sazula
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The sound of silence is a beautiful thing.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Quiet

**Author's Note:**

> This follows on from Ten Years Later.

The first thing you noticed as you opened the door to your apartment was the silence. The lack of sound was...strange. You'd gotten so used to noise over the past couple of weeks that you'd almost forgotten what the absence of it was like.

You opened your mouth to call out to your husband, but caught yourself just in time. Silence could only mean one thing... _she was finally asleep!_

The latest addition to your little family had made a surprise appearance not long after the New Year had begun, almost four weeks before she was due to arrive. To say it was unexpected was an understatement. You and Shaun had been on board the _Altaïr II_ preparing to see the in New Year as usual, after spending Christmas in New York. You'd thought everything would be fine; after all, you weren't due until the beginning of February. _Nothing will happen,_ you'd reassured Desmond after he'd expressed his concern about you being on board a ship in the middle of the Atlantic, _we've got ages until Pipsqueak arrives._

Famous last words.

You'd assumed the twinges in your back had been nothing but your usual aches, even remaining unconcerned as they steadily worsened over a couple of days. It wasn't until the pain began moving along your abdomen that you realised that maybe this _wasn't_ just backache.

Shaun had, understandably, flown into a panic. He babbled frantically about how it was too soon, how the ship wasn't safe enough, and how could we be so sure that Dr. Stephanie Chiu was an actual doctor? You'd eventually asked Rebecca to take him out onto the deck to get some air before following Stephanie to the medical bay. You had to admit, though, you were a little worried yourself. You were stuck on a ship with vast expanses of ocean surrounding you and only one doctor on board to help.

“Have you done this before?” you'd asked Stephanie as she helped you onto a bed.

“Yes, of course,” she'd replied breezily, not looking you in the eye.

“Really?”

“Once, when I was a medical student...I mostly observed.”

“I see. Maybe we won't tell Shaun that part.”

Shaun had appeared in the doorway about five minutes later, his face a vague shade of grey, but he remained by your side the entire time, clutching your hand as you pushed your daughter into the world. The look of pure wonder and love in his eyes as Stephanie held her up for you both to see was something you'd never forget. Even with her early arrival, little Sofia Hastings was perfectly healthy...and had quite a set of lungs on her, as you and Shaun discovered now you were back home.

“How can someone so tiny be so _loud_?” you groaned over her cries, gently rocking her in an attempt to get her to go to sleep. You'd been trying for what seemed like hours but she wasn't having any of it, continuing to wail loudly. She'd been much quieter on the ship!

“Takes after her mother, obviously,” Shaun teased, reaching out to take her from you.

“If I recall correctly, Shaun, it was you telling me how much you _wanted_ me to be loud that got us in this situation,” you pointed out, handing the squalling bundle over to him. “You see if you can get her to sleep while I head out for more baby wipes.”

That was half an hour ago. Whatever Shaun had done had worked. _Thank God!_

Treading softly so as not to wake Sofia, you padded into the living room to see if Shaun was in there so you could grill him about what he'd done and make him teach you his secrets.

He was sitting on the couch, Sofia curled up on his chest, his hands protectively cradling her, both of them asleep. The image of the two of them almost mirrored a photograph of Shaun and his father from when Shaun was a baby that was on his night stand. Your felt your heart swell with affection at the sight, happy tears welling in your eyes.

You pulled out your cellphone and snapped a picture, knowing Shaun would want to see it. He looked so relaxed and content, the fine lines that graced the corners of his eyes barely there. Even the greying hair at his temples seemed hardly noticeable.

A soft sigh from Sofia caught your attention. She looked so much like her dad, inheriting his nose and pouty lips along with his hair colour, however Shaun would always insist she looked exactly like you.

Careful not to make any noise you moved over to the couch and gently sat down next to the two of them.

“Hmm?” Shaun mumbled, the couch cushions sinking under your weight alerting him to your presence. He cracked an eye open and looked at you. “How long have you been here?”

“Long enough to take this,” you answered, showing him the picture you'd taken.

“Nice to know I'm still devilishly handsome when I'm asleep,” he grinned.

“Yes, you can rest easy now,” you joked. “You'll have to tell me what you did to get her off to sleep.”

“Oh, I just, sort of...sang to her,” Shaun stammered, going slightly red.

You smiled widely at him. “That's so cute. What did you sing?”

“...Whitney Houston.”

You had to bite the inside of your cheek to stop from bursting into laughter. “Really? I wasn't aware you were a fan.”

“Yes, well, one was in my head for some reason so I went with it,” he sniffed. “The important thing to remember is that it worked.”

You gave him a gentle peck on the cheek. “It worked wonderfully, love. Let's hope it works the next time she won't sleep.”

He returned your kiss with one of his own to your nose and slipped his arm around your shoulder, careful not to wake Sofia. He pulled you against him before closing his eyes with a wide yawn.

You rested your head on his shoulder, gazing reverently at your still-sleeping daughter, reaching out to tenderly stroke her cheek. She yawned and wriggled against Shaun's chest before settling down again, her tiny hand now clamped around one of your fingers.

“I love you,” you whispered. “Both of you.”

“We love you, too,” Shaun hummed sleepily, his eyes still closed.

Feeling your own eyelids grow heavy, you snuggled closer to him and shut your eyes, feeling completely at peace as you slipped into your own slumber.

 


End file.
